Disney has been known to put out an inspirational sports movie every couple years, and Queen of Katwe is another fine addition to their live action film library. In fact, Queen of Katwe is one of the best Disney has ever done, because the aspirational story it is based on may be the best underdog source material Disney has tapped into. You may have missed it during its wide release in theaters (wide is an overstatement with just over 1,500 theaters), but now Queen of Katwe is available to own at home. Here are the reasons why you should track down a copy now.
Queen of Katwe
The film tells the story of Phiona Mutesi (Madina Nalwanga), a 9-year-old Ugandan girl who grew up in the streets of Katwe, a slum in Kampala. Phiona spends her days selling vegetables alongside her hardworking mother, Harriet (Lupita Nyong’o), and her brother, Brian (Martin Kabanza). One day, Phiona follows her brother to a makeshift church where Robert Katende (David Oyelowo) is teaching the children of Katwe how to play chess to try and give them a chance to receive formal education. Phiona turns out to be a prodigy, but struggles against her mother who doesn’t understand how the game is more important than survival and feeding the family.
There are so many good parts to Queen of Katwe. Disney always does a great job of making you root for the underdogs in their sports movies, but never have they portrayed characters in such difficult circumstances as they do in this movie. This movie should be required viewing for families, so kids have a chance to see the struggles and reality that other children are facing in the world. I can’t imagine anyone who wouldn’t walk away from this film feeling motivated to do something more in life or reach out and try to help someone. The cast sells the whole thing perfectly. Madina Nalwanga carries a lot of the movie on her shoulders, but she handles it like a professional and you cheer for her success the entire time. Meanwhile, Oyelowo and Nyong’o continue to prove why they are two of the best actors working in the industry.
Bonus Features
Surprisingly, Queen of Katwe was given pretty good treatment in terms of special features. A lot of love and emotion went into the making of this movie and you can really tell from the supplemental features available. Let’s go over the must-watch bonus features.
- Queen of Katwe: Their Story – This making-of is the perfect companion piece to Queen of Katwe every way. The short film is broken up into three parts – the first is dedicated to the Director, Mira Nair, as well as the real story; the second is dedicated to the adult cast and the people they portray; and the third is dedicated to the children actors and the kids they portray. It runs close to 30 minutes total, but after watching this feature you will learn all you need to know about the back story and the making of the movie. It is pretty much required viewing for the person who will walk away from the movie wanting to read or watch more about the story.
- A Fork, A Spoon, & A Knight – This is another short film, but this one centers completely on Robert Katende. Katende is a truly inspirational human being, and the world would be better off with more men and woman striving to help as much as he does.
Other features include an Audio Commentary by Mira Nair that is absolutely worth a listen if you are eager to revisit Queen of Katwe with multiple viewings, a look at the making of the music in the movie, as well as deleted scenes.
Personally, I cannot recommend Queen of Katwe enough. Knowing that the film was certified fresh at 92% on Rotten Tomatoes set up some high expectations, but it lived up to them all. Yes, the story is essentially by-the-numbers in terms of underdog sports movies, but the characters and real-life story elevate this film over the rest. Even though Queen of Katwe didn’t do well in theaters, I hope Disney sees the quality and importance of telling more stories like this one. Don’t wait for it to hit Netflix – go out and buy or rent Queen of Katwe for your next movie night.
